The Northern Championship was a 1 day race hosted by the Blackfly RC track on September 5th, 2020. Blackfly RC is owned/operated by Stephane Doucet, who spent a lot of time preparing his track for the big event!
The day of the 5th started out cool and very sunny, and the day heated up to about 22 degrees with a slight breeze which went across the track from right to left, blowing toward the Futaba banner, and stayed sunny all day. The track held up well through the event with all the treatment Stephane made to keep it dust free and hard packed. There were only a few spots in the jump faces where potholes formed. The track plan was to run 2 qualifiers, blow dust off the track, and then run the 3rd qualifier and the finals.
23 racers from all over the Maritimes (NB, NS, PEI) attended the event. The racers filled the classes, with most classes having a single group of 10-12 entries. 2wd buggy was the the most popular at the event with an A & B main. Nitro was brought back with a 3 car single qualifier and a 15 minute final. With the classes very full there were inevitable crashes between cars as the racers learned to race together until racers learned to race close in a group. Practice in the qualifiers paid off! The finals were much more entertaining with some very close racing action.
Thanks to all the racers who were able to attend the event and help make the event a success. Thanks to all the sponsors of the event who provided door prized for the event including: Great Hobbies, Maritime RC Racing, Tim Hortons, Futaba, Bathurst/Beresford Subway, and Tracadie McDonalds! Thanks to Stephane Doucet and family who hosted the event and gave us a great racing experience on the long weekend!
2wd Buggy A-Main: RESULTS – VIDEO
1st(tq): Gregg Lawton, 2nd: Trevor Furlotte, 3rd: Gordon Mercer
2wd Buggy was the most popular class at the event with an A & B main. At the tone of the A-Main, Gregg jumped into the lead doubling the initial triple jump in an attempt to break from the group, but a poor line through the doubles brought the pack back into the race for the lead. While Gregg and Gordon were working away at at trying to keep ahead of the racers, Trevor was quietly moving up positions from his 6th place starting spot to sit in 3rd. An untimely crash by Gregg gave Trevor the opportunity to lead the race. While Trevor and Gregg were battling for the 1/2 spots, Gordon and Maxim were wrestling for the 3rd spot. with 1 minute to go Trevor struggled in the double/double section allowing Gregg to sprint by to take 1st while Trevor finished on the same lap in 2nd. On the last lap Gordon was able to make the pass and take the 3rd spot on the podium. Another hard charger of the race, David McKenna, was able to improve on his 9th place start from the B-Main bump and finish 6th.
2wd Buggy B-Main: RESULTS – VIDEO
1st(bump): David McKenna, 2nd(bump): Dave Nicholson, 3rd: Niels De Ronde
In the 2wd Buggy B-Main the top 2 drivers would advance to the A-Main! From the tone David McKenna would have a shaky start with an early battle with Niels De Ronde. David would take back the top spot and continue strong to finish 1st after an unusual spin out on the finish line. Dave Nicholson also had his eye on a bump spot, and would work his way from his 6th starting position through the field into 2nd spot. Niels would drop from his second start to finish in 3rd. Another racer who improved their finish position was new racer Andy Palmer who would improve his 9th place start to finish 6th, after getting as high as 4th in the standings.
2wd Stadium A-Main: RESULTS – VIDEO
1st(tq): Stephane Doucet, 2nd: Shawn Doucet, 3rd: Gordon Mercer
2wd Stadium truck was a new class added to the racing scene in the Maritimes for 2020, and it had a full class of 7 racers in this event. From the tone Stephane was able to break away from the field early in the race. Gordon and Shawn were locked in a back and forth struggle for the 2nd spot on the podium that neither wanted to give up. At the 1/2 way mark in the race, Stephane had a bad lap that allowed Shawn to move briefly into 1st, and Gordon into 2nd. Stephane quickly recovered and several laps later resumed his spot as the leader in this race. With Stephane securing 1st, Shawn and Gordon went back at battling for 2nd, exchanging the position until Gordon had a bad lap which gave Shawn enough breathing room to finish comfortably in 2nd. Gordon recovered from his bad lap and finished a strong 3rd. Dario had a firm grip on the 4th place spot, until an untimely spin out on the final corner which allowed Trevor to sneak past to take 4th.
2wd SCT A-Main: RESULTS – VIDEO
1st(tq): Gregg Lawton, 2nd: William Muirhead, 3rd: Shawn Doucet
2wd SCT was a popular class at the event with 10 entries. At the start of the race Gregg and William were able to break away from the field and get a gap to 3rd. Gregg’s lap counter stopped counting for quite a few laps, but he was able to hold the lead after a brief challenge from William mid-race. Gregg would go on to finish 1st and William would have a great race to finish 2nd. Shawn Doucet would have a solid race to take the 3rd spot on the podium. Other drivers who improved from their starting position were Patrick Gionet who jumped from his 6th starting position on the grid to finish 4th. Henry Ford would improve on his 7th place start to finish 5th.
4wd Buggy A-Main: RESULTS – VIDEO
1st(tq): Stephane Doucet, 2nd: Shawn Doucet, 3rd: Dario Paoletti
4wd buggy is another new class in the Maritimes for 2020! Its becoming quite popular with the racers as we see it gaining more racers each race event. 8 racers entered the class at this event. From the tone there were a few mix ups over the first couple of jump sets. After the dust and nerves settled we found Shawn Doucet had jumped up from his 6th place starting position to become the race leader! Shawn was able to hold 1st for a few laps, until Stephane recovered from his initial start to retake the lead and finish strong in 1st. Shawn would drop to 2nd, but would have a very consistent drive to finish 2nd on the podium. Dario had a slow start and initially fell as low as forth, but would get his head down and take the 3rd spot on the podium.
4wd SCT A-Main: RESULTS – VIDEO
1st: Shane Foote, 2nd: Gregg Lawton, 3rd(tq): Dario Paoletti
4wd SCT was another popular class at the event with 11 racers in the A-Main. At the tone there was a little contact between Gregg and Dario which helped Shane take an early lead as the other 2 worked their was back through the field. Gerrit De Ronde had a spectacular first lap and jumped from his 9th place start to briefly move to 2nd before falling to the 6th spot where he would finish. Once the field settled down a bit Dario had recovered and moved back in to 2nd, with Gregg following in 3rd. Gregg and Dario would trade 2nd back and forth over the 7 minute final. As the buzzer went Dario would take the 3rd spot on the podium, Gregg would move into 2nd, and Shane would finish on a victory lap to take 1st after having a very consistent run. Another racer who made good improvement was Niels, who would move into the 4th spot after starting 6th.
1/8 E-Buggy A-Main: RESULTS – VIDEO
1st: Stephane Doucet, 2nd: William Muirhead, 3rd(tq): Dario Paoletti
1/8 E-Buggy had a really good turnout at the Northern Championship! At the tone Stephane and William got a great start and move up to the 1st and 2nd spot. Dario and Shane had a bit of a rough lap, and this allowed Patrick LaFlamme to jump into 3rd from his 5th place start. Shane would be the first to recover and move up a position into 4th. Dario then would make a big move up from 5th to settle into the 3rd spot, with Shane staying in 4th and Patrick falling to 6th. Patrick would make a bit of a jump back to 4th, but then settled back into 5th. After the half way mark of the race the positions settled and the field had a strong race to the finish with Stephane cruising to 1st, William running well in 2nd, and Dario holding 3rd!
1/8 E-Truggy A-Main: RESULTS – VIDEO
1st(tq): Shane Foote, 2nd: Stephane Doucet, 3rd: Maxim Losier
1/8 E-Truggy was an interesting race with many changes for podium positions through the race. At the start Shane was able to get away clean with Stephane running close behind in 2nd. Maxim charged from his 4th place start to take 2nd for himself! William then made his own charge and he too stole the 2nd spot. Maxim would recover and he once again would charge to 2nd with William falling rapidly to 5th. Stephane was quietly running in 3rd through all this madness while he was waiting for the right time to make a move, and with 9 laps remaining he made his charge. He was able to pass Maxim for 2nd, and on the next lap pass Shane for 1st! Shane would follow close, and with 1 minute to go he was able to make a clean pass before the double/double section to regain 1st! Stephane tried to apply pressure, but Shane had the track figured out and ran clean to finish 1st, with Stephane in 2nd, and Maxim running 3rd.
1/8 Nitro Buggy A-Main: RESULTS
1st(tq): Shane Foote, 2nd: Gerrit De Ronde, 3rd: William Muirhead
1/8 Nitro Buggy had a class of drivers at the event. With only 3 drivers the class was held to a single qualifier and a 15 minute final to give some experience refueling. At the start of the final, William would have a great lap and move briefly into 1st before Shane would recover and regain the first position. William would then cruise in 2nd spot until his motor backed off and ended his race. This was good news for Gerrit De Ronde as he moved into the 2nd spot. As the dust(and nitro smoke) settled Shane would cruise into 1st place on the podium, Gerrit was thrilled to take the 2nd spot, and William finished in 3rd.
Event Photos:
